


Prey for Me

by DandyVela



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bounty Hunters, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Dystopian Etheria, Emphasis On The Hunters, F/F, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rivals to Lovers, Toxic Wasteland Aesthetic, We Took So Many Liberties, general badassery, so much UST
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-22 17:28:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30042213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DandyVela/pseuds/DandyVela
Summary: Adora scoffs with the end of the clean bandage between her teeth. The first layer of gauze is already soaked, her blood spreading like a crimson spider web."Well, you're not gonna kill her," Adora grumbles, curling another layer of the bandage on her arm. Her eyes meet with Catra's over the still flickering embers. "We took the job, not you.""Do you think I give a fuck about you and your shitty team?" Catra asks, scrunching her nose as she watches Adora struggle. "You're so bad at this.""I'm not," Adora says, her voice growing high. "It's just harder to do it for yourself."Catra unfolds her crossed legs and slides closer to her. Adora can feel the warmth oozing from her body, and the scent of her skin is so sweet under the smell of oil and dirt."Let me, idiot."Adora does. Her attention is solely on Catra's face - the arch of her brows and her slightly parted lips with the tiny pink tip of her tongue visible.Catra glances up, catching Adora staring. Neither of them looks away.Catra says, with a palm warm on Adora's arm and her voice low: "It's personal. I won't let you have her."Adora swallows thickly."I can't let you do that. It's personal for me, too."
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 22
Kudos: 106





	Prey for Me

Grinds of rocks are creaking under Adora’s gloved hand as she grabs the salient pieces to climb higher on the cliff. One foot in front of the other, she makes her way up - swift and quiet. The beams of the pastel suns burn her back and the nape of her neck, making sweat drip into the eye that isn’t protected by her monocular.

Adora grunts and huffs under the weight of her backpack - it’s almost as heavy as her. It only takes a couple more pulls and she can finally prop herself on her elbows, throwing a leg over the edge and hauling herself up.

She stays low, crawling to the other side of the plateau. She leans her back to a rock by the edge, pushing the straps of her backpack off her shoulders. She dumps it down, causing a cloud of dust to twirl in the air. Adora inhales through it, lungs straining, and peeks down into the canyon slithering under her.

She turns on her monocular, adjusting the focus and turns her attention to a dark spot by the river. Adora can make out the silhouette of a person crouching, dressed in layers of ripped clothing, drinking from their cupped hands. Their skin is blue and feathery.

Static creaks in Adora’s ear, followed by a click, and a familiar voice asks: _“Do you think that’s him?”_

Adora taps her intercom.

“I’m not sure yet,” she says, voice rough from the dry air. “I’m waiting for them to move so I can see their face.”

There is some clacking and pinging coming from the other side of the line.

_“The file says Cobalt was last seen in a village only a couple miles down the river. Yesterday’s report. It has to be him.”_

“Wait,” Adora whispers. “They’re standing up. Bow, bring me closer.”

Adora’s monocular whirrs, the scene through the glass becomes blurry as Bow zooms in on the figure straightening, their hood falling back from their face.

Pupilless, yellow eyes stare ahead over the river, sharp teeth peeking out of their mouth as they grimace in the sunlight.

“It’s him,” Adora says.

Another voice joins in the conversation.

_“Do you guys see him?”_

“Yeah,” Adora says, getting her rifle out. “I got this. Stay in your position, okay?”

Glimmer’s reply starts with an annoyed grunt. It makes Adora smile faintly as she positions the rifle and crawls closer, her chin on the stock.

_“You always got it. What’s the fun in being your support when you literally never need me?”_

Adora takes her monocular off, relying on the rifle for taking aim. She can hear the grin in Bow’s voice as he asks:

_“Didn’t you say you would - and I quote - rather eat glass than wither in front of a screen with me?”_

_“I stand by what I said.”_ Glimmer softens her voice. _“It’s not you, it’s the boring tech.”_

 _“So she says,”_ Bow sighs.

“Please stop flirting in my ear while I’m trying to shoot a guy,” Adora grumbles, her index finger resting by the trigger. Her hands are always moving, getting ready.

 _“Flirting? Who’s flirting?”_ Glimmer shrieks, triggering another wave of static. _“I’m not_ flirting-”

Adora squeezes her eyes shut at the noise, growling just to herself. She’s so not in the mood for this; as much as she has grown closer with Bow and Glimmer over the last year, she still finds herself in moments of desperately wanting to be alone so she can focus.

Adora licks her chapped lips, eyes back on her target. She flexes her muscles and inhales, slow and deep. Looking through the telescopic sight, Adora aims, curls her finger around the trigger and pulls.

Easy. Quick. Clean.

Cobalt’s scream echoes through the canyon, just like the hollow thud of him dropping to the ground.

The rocks are stained crimson around him, a growing pool of blood flowing into the river.

Adora raises her chin.

 _"Right knee?"_ Glimmer asks. _"Smart. I'll go get him."_

 _"I'm on my way too,"_ Bow says.

Adora nods like they could see her.

"See you down there."

*

Adora crawls into the old sand cruiser last, slamming the hatch on her way down, and steps off the ladder. She pulls her gloves off with her teeth, making her way towards the control room in the front. She leaves her backpack by the ladder, not bothering with unpacking; sooner or later she will need it again, and it’s better to have it ready all of the time in case something unexpected happens.

The short airlock doors open with a hiss. Adora has to crouch down to step across the doorstep, and she's barely able to straighten once inside. She hangs her head to the side, pushing cables and loose parts away with the back of her hand.

Bow is still in the commander's seat, letting the sand cruiser drive back to base on autopilot; it climbs the dunes with a quiet rattling and determination. The room is narrow and dark,the screens in front of Bow giving a flickering, blue glow to his silhouette as he taps on the keyboard as fast as he can.

Adora comes around him and leans forward, scanning through the report Bow is writing.

"Hey, I wasn't being reckless at all," Adora pretends to be offended, bumping Bow's shoulder with her fist.

Bow hums, but doesn't stop typing for even one second as he asks:

"What about Cobalt giving you concussion because you jumped between him and Glimmer when she tried to tie him up?"

Adora straightens. Her mouth dries up.

"I- I had to help her. If I didn’t interfere-"

"Glimmer had it under control." Bow's voice is gentle as he turns to Adora, finally looking her in the eye. He reaches out to take Adora's hand - she winces but doesn't pull back. Not anymore. "You need to trust us more, Adora. I know it's hard, and I know you've grown so much since we first met-"

"Thanks," Adora mumbles.

"I mean it. But you don't have to do things alone anymore. You know we are here to help you, right? We're a team. We’ve got each other's backs."

Adora swallows and casts down her eyes. Her throat feels too tight, just like her skin itching under the dust and dirt. She squeezes Bow's hand in hers.

"I know. I'm sorry."

"Aw, don't be. We're so proud of you. It's just a long journey after everything that happened. But we're with you all the way. You can't get rid of us so easily."

Adora laughs. Although Bow is only half right about Adora's reasons, she still feels lighter any time Bow gives her reassurance about something she's used to but needs to lose.

The airlock doors hiss open again and Glimmer joins them.

“Ugh, why are you guys sitting in the dark?”

She taps on the control panel by the door, beads of light flickering up on the cables hanging down like electric vines. Bow and Adora squint and grunt as one, playfully exaggerating.

Glimmer snickers.

“You nerds.”

Adora asks, leaning to the wall and crossing her ankles:

“How’s Cobalt?”

“He’s fine. Considering… you know. You fractured his knee, which he’s a little upset about.” Glimmer shrugs, pouting like she takes their captive's hostility as seriously as having a rude guest. “Anyway, can you finish up soon? Dinner is ready."

"I'm just gonna send this-" Bow says, typing some more with the tip of his tongue between his teeth. The screen flashes up, then shrinks into a tiny dot fading into black. "Done."

He staggers to his feet, craning his neck to look past Glimmer.

"What's for dinner? Please tell me it's not instant noodles again."

With the look of Glimmer's face, she doesn't need to answer that. Bow sighs, whimpering:

"I can't wait to get back home in the morning and eat something normal again."

"Noodles aren't that bad," Glimmer tries. She quirks a brow as something crosses her mind, and peeks at Adora. Her voice is trembling with suppressed laughter. "Remember how Adora used to eat them dry?"

It works; Bow is grinning, too, and wraps an arm around Adora's neck.

"Aw, baby's first cooked noodles. She was so shocked."

Adora snorts, her own grin wide and bright. She shakes a loose tuft of hair out of her face.

"I still like them better crunchy."

Glimmer scrunches her nose and starts turning on her heel.

"Of course you do, weirdo. Now come on before it gets cold."

*

Adora is starting to undress, her reflection in the dirty shard of a mirror following her moves like a ghost. Losing weight layer by layer, her breathing seems to even out, too; the glowing First One's writing on her pauldrons and breastplate burn out as the pieces lose contact with her body's warmth. She's seen that fading glow before, even when the armor never had to leave the bodies of her people to grow cold; the memories of that day still flood her mind whenever she gets ready for bed. For the longest time she never removed her own, terrified of the sight of dying constellations.

Adora dresses down to a simple black tank top and straightens. She ignores the reflection in front of her - it’s trying to get her to look.

Adora turns her back to herself and pulls her elastic out of her hair, holding it between her teeth. She combs through the mess with her fingers and ties it up loosely again.

The sand cruiser tilts to the side. Adora twirls and reaches out to press her palm to the wall for keeping balance.

Her eyes meet with her reflection's.

 _Fuck_.

Now she's glued to the sight of herself that she always tries to avoid. The pink flesh of the scar reaching from her left brow to her cheekbone crosses her eye in a violent angle, emphasizing the empty iris that glows bright blue like the brand of her shame and failure; it devours her pupil until her eye looks like a blind and empty crystal ball.

Adora swallows thickly. She wants to turn away again, to get back to her evening workout routine with the pull-up bar attached to the short walls, and the different dead parts of ship junk she uses as weight, but-

Her body doesn't let her. She's paralyzed by her own face, all dirt and scars and guilt.

Fine. She faces herself, then, empty stares and quivering lips. She deserves to be reminded of her mistakes. She deserves the aching, the acid dripping down her throat, the lead numbness in her veins, she deserves it all for what she's done.

Her fingers start shaking on the wall, strength oozing out her elbow which brings her closer to the mirror.

Face it. Feel it. Take it.

There's loud pounding at the door, and Glimmer yelling something.

Adora screams; the shock of the noise jerking her out of her mind leaves her body weak and hollow for a second.

"Adora?! Are you okay?"

Glimmer is standing right next to her now, her palm hovering above Adora's raised shoulder. She's not touching her, just keeping it close - a reassuring warmth.

Trying to speak, Adora is just realizing how her chest is heaving violently. Her voice is barely a whisper, coming out with a suffocating huff:

"Yeah. I'm fine."

"Adora," Glimmer tries softly. She closes the distance between them, squeezing Adora's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault."

Adora slips a palm on top of Glimmer's hand, taking a deep breath through her nose.

"I know," she lies. "I'm okay. Um. I'm sorry. Why… why were you looking for me?"

Glimmer draws back with a kind smile.

"Actually, it's Bow looking for both of us. He wants us to meet him in the control room."

Adora grabs an old jacket, throwing it on before following Glimmer's lead to the corridor.

"Did he say why?" Adora asks, furrowing her brows.

"No," Glimmer shrugs. "He sounded pretty hectic but you know him. Could just be a cute desert fox he saw."

Adora laughs, but the crease between her eyebrows doesn't fade. She won't be able to tame her heartbeat until she can be sure that it's not bad news and danger waiting for them.

Adora lets Glimmer go ahead as they walk, but she switches positions before the control room door so she can get most of what's waiting for them. She sees the corners of Glimmer's lips curl down in a grimace.

Her friends might be used to how she is by now, but they don't always appreciate it - especially Glimmer. Adora is thankful for her letting this one slide, apart from that grimace, but something is itching under Adora's skin, restless and dreadful. She doesn't have a good feeling about Bow wanting to see them so shortly after they parted.

Adora and Glimmer step inside. 

"Come on, hurry up," Bow waves wildly, not even looking back at them. "You have to see this."

"Is it a desert fox?" Glimmer asks teasingly.

"It's not a desert fox," Bow replies. He sounds serious enough that Glimmer's smirk drops, just like her shoulders. "Huntara sent the teams a new target. You _will not_ believe who it is."

Glimmer peeks worriedly at Adora, who is already leaning towards the screen.

Adora feels like she is going to pass out. Blood rushes through her scar, her hands growing cold. She hides her shakes by curling her hands into fists, trying to breathe, breathe, breathe.

She turns her head very slowly, meeting Glimmer's eyes above her shoulder. Glimmer stares back at her, eyes wide and hands on her chest.

Adora says, very softly:

"Glimmer."

Glimmer takes a couple steps closer, eyes only leaving Adora's when she is standing right behind Bow.

She looks at the screen too.

Gasps.

And for a minute does or says nothing else - stands there like a statue.

Adora cannot blame her; she is at loss for words, and Bow is, too. Still, he is the first one to break the silence, voice and features as gentle as Adora's:

"What should we do? We have to act quick if-"

"We're taking it," Glimmer says.

"Are you sure?" Adora asks.

Glimmer turns away, her voice growing dark.

"Yeah. I'm sure."

The airlock doors close on her shrinking figure. Once alone, Bow and Adora share a quick look; Adora can see the worry and the compassion painted clear on Bow's face.

"Are _you_ okay with this, Adora?"

Any other time, Adora would need time to answer a question heavy like that. But right now, after everything that happened in her cabin, she can reply without hesitation, not even a quiver in her voice.

"Definitely." She doesn't wait for Bow to accept the job; she does it herself, reaching across Bow's space while he leans back on the chair obediently.

Adora straightens the tightness in her chest seeming to ease with the slow breaths she takes, her mind cut clear and already focused on the new target.

This one will take all that they have.

And Adora is ready.

  
  


* * *

  
  


Catra throws her head back, laughing heartily. She crosses her legs, turning on her bar stool towards the girl sitting next to her.

The bar is cramped, dim, and dirty. The glass bottom of Catra's drink sticks to the bar whenever she tries to pick it up, the beer spilling out of it with every tug.

A band is playing live at the back. The bar doesn't have a stage; just a narrow corner with brighter lights that are still dim and hazy, leaving Catra feeling like she was watching them through a dusty window.

Catra rubs her dry eyes with the back of her hand. She can't act out _everything_ , and having to wait two hours for this chick to show up left her angry enough that she can't bring herself to cry from fake laughter.

Catra glances up from behind long lashes, her tail sweeping to the side.

"Good one," she says, keeping her voice low and raspy. She leans her chin in her hand, trying not to grimace when she rests her elbow on the disgusting, sticky bar. "You're funny. And I like your jacket."

The girl swallows thickly and averts her gaze, sipping from her drink. Oh, so she's shy. How cute. Such a shame she only gained confidence when she killed innocent people.

Catra doesn't look away. She lets her gaze wander on the girl's body, so whenever she decides to look at her again she will catch Catra staring.

"Awww. Didn't mean to embarrass you," Catra coos gently.

"You didn't," the girl hisses; her tongue flicks out, purple side scales rising by her head.

Catra cocks a brow, eyes finding the girl's again. She did catch her staring, and Catra can hear her heartbeat picking up.

"Good," Catra purrs.

She slips off the stool with the price of her beer in her hand, stepping closer to the girl. She flinches, but stays put.

Catra slides the coins towards the bartender, but her attention is somewhere else as she tiptoes; she still needs to grab onto the girl's leather jacket to bring her down until they are face to face.

Catra whispers, her eyes sticking to the girl's lips:

"Because I saw the way you were looking at me. And I'm so bored of this stupid bar."

Catra lets the jacket go, but the girl stays put. Catra smirks, a sharp fang peeking out suggestively. She raises eyebrows but says nothing more as she turns on her heel, starting to sway away.

The air outside is suffocatingly hot, burning Catra's lungs as she inhales. She ruffles through her short curls, easing the damage of the dry air and twirling sand. She starts walking around the bar, ears perking up at the sound she was waiting for - the sound of the bar door opening and closing, the music and the ruckus drumming out louder for a moment.

Catra doesn't hide her grin anymore. She turns into the alley between two buildings, and the girl from the bar who followed her like a shadow appears immediately. The girl presses close until Catra's back hits the wall and tilts her head. She still looks confused a bit, unsure about Catra's words and what they might mean.

Catra giggles sweetly. Her right hand reaches for the girl's waist, yanking her close to make sure she understands -

And rams a dagger straight into her heart with the other.

The girl's jaw drops open, a scream breaking into rattling in her throat. Catra winks at her and twists the dagger with an eerie _crunch_.

Catra pulls back and lets the body hit the ground, then cleans the dagger on the girl's white shirt. With her free hand, she takes out her old badge from her pocket, which Entrapta had reprogrammed into a communication tool.

Catra pins it on her chest and taps on it. The badge glows up red.

"Hey. I'm done."

_"Oh, you're okay! Are you okay? Please tell me you're okay- gosh, you've been off for three hours and I had no idea if you're alive or dead or dying and I couldn't go there to-"_

"I told you I was gonna shut comms off," Catra cuts in gently. "Chill, Scorp. I'm fine. I- _Fuck!"_

There's a loud, metallic crash like Scorpia dropped something heavy as she got frightened by Catra's outcry. Catra growls at the screeching static as panic creeps back in Scorpia's voice:

_"What happened? What's going on?! Are you hurt?"_

"What? No." Catra puts the dagger away and crouches down by the girl's head, pushing the body up into a sitting position. "Shit. She's bleeding all over my new jacket. Hey, are you gonna come pick me up or not?" She taps on her badge again. The red light starts blinking. "That's me."

Catra can hear the wink in Scorpia's voice.

_"I'll be right there!"_

*

Catra is sitting by a tiny fire, leaning her back against the side of the tank. She draws a knee up, rests her elbow on it and dangles her hand. Her newly acquired jacket is thrown over her shoulders; it smells a little like metal and the girl's skin, but it will fade. It always does.

Twilight creeps in with drawing shadows, sharp and ever growing. The desert breeze grew cold, making Catra's fur rise on her legs where they peek out from between the rips of her leggings.

The fire is cracking quietly.

Catra cherishes these moments of serenity and the chance to be alone when she is not working apart from her team. Ever since she met Scorpia and Entrapta, her life has become very noisy and chaotic, where every second is filled with excited screaming and those two chirping loudly about something Catra can't even follow.

The hatch opens above Catra. She tips her chin up; Scorpia's head hangs above her upside down, grinning bright.

"Dinner's ready!"

Catra leans ahead and turns; the jacket slips off her shoulders, bare in the cold now.

"Need a hand?"

Scorpia grimaces as she balances a tray on her pincers. Catra can hear something splashing around and dripping out.

"Uhhh, yes please," Scorpia says.

Catra staggers to her feet and climbs up the ladder on the side of the tank, barely using her hands. When she reaches up, she takes the whole tray from Scorpia.

"Let me, big girl."

"Thank you," Scorpia breathes, and dries her sweaty forehead. "I wonder when Entrapta is gonna finish that robot thingy that can carry stuff."

Catra starts walking down the steps of the ladder, balancing the tray above her head.

"I don't think that's gonna be anytime soon," Catra mutters under her breath.

Entrapta started and abandoned projects like Catra changed her shirts. It annoyed Catra at first, especially when Entrapta started collecting the weirdest shit she found, overpacking their only living quarter - the tank.

Catra risked her life stealing it and now she can barely fit inside, constantly fighting her way through the junk.

Catra puts the tray down carefully while Scorpia climbs down too.

"Isn't she coming too?" Catra asks.

Before Scorpia could open her mouth, two thick mops of hair flop out of the tank and curl around the ladder. Entrapta rises from the inside, landing on her hair like a spring.

"Oh hi, Catra!" She exclaims, drying her oily gloves on her already oily trousers. It just makes an even bigger mess. "When did you come back?"

"Three hours ago?" Catra grunts a little. "We’ve seen each other like, four times?" Entrapta is staring at her blankly. Catra lets it go and turns her head away. “Can we just eat?”

Entrapta plops down by the fire, followed by Scorpia. Catra is just now able to really look at the tray they brought out - three tiny bowls, half-filled by some greenish soup. No meat, no potatoes, no noodles.

Catra’s throat tightens at the sight.

“Could you sell anything at the market?” She asks, sounding as casual as she can.

“Nah,” Scorpia clicks her tongue. “Just this one little uh-“ She tries to mime how the mysterious thing looks.

“Isotopic charge spore container,” Entrapta helps out, reaching for one of the bowls.

“Yeah, isotronic change s’more controller. But we only got twenty credits for it.”

“It was worthless,” Entrapta giggles. “We made a good deal. Those containers can be over-calibrated to the point where they can explode any minute once attached to the mainframe!”

“Sooo you sold explosives for nothing to a stranger.”

“Yep!” Entrapta slurps from her bowl.

“What did I expect?” Catra mumbles, and stares at the two remaining bowls on the tray.

She got seventy credits for her job, which means that from ninety credits, they only have enough to buy food for a couple days. Not to mention the next village is still a days drive from where they are, so the day after tomorrow is the earliest they’ll arrive and be able to shop for food.

Scorpia takes the bowl closer to her, and glances at Catra.

“Aren’t you gonna eat?”

Catra slides back towards the side of the tank, further from the fire and the light.

“Actually, I already ate. With the girl, at the bar.”

“But you had no money,” Entrapta points out.

“It was her treat. I’m that charming,” Catra says imperiously. She softens her voice and averts her gaze. “You two can have mine, too.”

“You sure?” Scorpia tilts her head to the side, cocking a brow worriedly. She probably can sense that Catra is lying, but doesn’t want to question and overrule her decision.

“Yeah,” Catra looks back at her and grins. “You look like you need the extra portion.”

Scorpia laughs.

“Don’t mind if I do.”

Catra takes the leather jacket and slips her arms through. It has grown even colder now that the suns have dipped behind the horizon. The evening sky is dressed in a dozen pastels and greys, the first stars blinking sullenly.

Catra draws her knees up and hugs them, her tail curling around her ankles. Her eyelids feel heavier and heavier with every second, and she finds it hard to keep her eyes open.

Ears twitching as she listens to Entrapta and Scorpia talk, barely catching every second word, she slowly dozes off.

*

Catra awakens from some loud knocking noises, sounding a little metallic. She doesn't feel the ground under her feet, as if they’re dangling off of something into the air.

She growls quietly, fidgeting.

"Sorry, Wildcat," Scorpia whispers, her voice coming from up close. "Sorry, sorry. It's so- so narrow in here."

Catra opens her eyes. She's inside their tank, in the pitch black only she can see through, carried by Scorpia. Scorpia probably knocked into stuff with her pincers, trying to maneuver across the sea of Entrapta's junk.

Catra exhales through her nose; a shadow of a sleepy laugh.

"You can put me down now," she mumbles. "I'm awake."

"Ohh, right," Scorpia says.

She places Catra down gently on top of a pile. Catra tries to find her balance, bare soles between sharp parts of some kind of an engine.

Their faces are at the same height now; Catra sees the blush creeping on Scorpia's face.

"Thanks," Catra says. The blush deepens.

"Psssh, don't mention it," Scorpia says with a nervous chuckle. "Anyway, I'll- I'll go to sleep too. Entrapta is still awake, somehow, so if you hear her go like," Scorpia mimics Entrapta's excited little screams, "you know the drill. I don't know why I told you that. It always happens. Um."

Catra pushes her tongue between her lip and teeth and droops her ears. She's been noticing the change in Scorpia's behavior around her, but hasn't quite figured out how to let her down gently.

 _Gentle_ was never her style. Growing up as a Horde soldier, she never got used to being treated with care. It's just as uncomfortable and annoying as flattering - where Catra keeps her heart locked behind bars of ribs, Scorpia wears hers on her sleeve.

How can someone break that and look at herself in the mirror after?

"Well," Scorpia pops her lips, taking a careful step back. "Sleep well, Wildcat."

"You too," Catra whispers. She grabs her elbows, hugging herself tight.

Scorpia turns around and hops across some twinkling braids of cables, mumbling incoherently to herself.

Catra watches her for a couple moments, letting her go, but then-

"Scorpia," she blurts out.

Scorpia stumbles and yelps. She manages to keep her balance and turns back towards Catra.

"Yeah?"

"I just wanted to say, uh." Catra licks her lips. Shit. Why is this so fucking hard? "I wanted to say that- I-"

Entrapta's voice screeches through the tank, coming from the ancient speakers she put in the corners.

_"Guys, you need to see this! Come quick! Quick!!"_

Catra draws her palms away from her ears once the message is over. Scorpia managed to listen through it with uncovered ears, but her grimace is barely fading.

"You know what that's about?" Catra asks bitterly.

Scorpia winces. She knocks the tips of her pincers together.

"N-no. No idea."

"Better see what she wants then." Catra hops off the engine and makes her way towards the front of the tank.

When no pairs of steps echo behind her, she peeks back.

"You coming?"

"Oh, yeah, yeah." Scorpia clears her throat and finally moves.

Catra sighs. So this went horribly; but at the same time, she is thankful to have another chance for that talk - one where she will hopefully be more prepared.

She leads Scorpia to the control room - if you can call it that - behind a heavy, thick mechanical door. There is a tiny space for one person to sit and a whole wall of flashing screens. Opening the door makes all the brightness pour out, and Catra and Scorpia squint, their eyes trying to adjust to the light.

"What's going on?" Catra asks.

Tufts of Entrapta's hair start pointing at the main screen excitedly.

"Look at that! It's a new mission straight from Huntara's database. I managed to hack into their system right after it got sent out."

"And?" Catra pressures, her tail flicking impatiently. It's not news that Entrapta acquires their targets from hacking into the systems of organizations; since Catra had refused to join one and wanted to stay a freelance Hunter, finding a tech genius was the only way for her to get jobs nowadays.

Entrapta twirls in her seat, pushing her goggles back to her forehead.

"She's worth _fifteen thousand credits_ ," she whisper-screams, raising both her hands. Her smile turns upside down then, blinking at Catra. "That's good. Right?"

Catra opens her mouth, then closes it.

Two seconds later, she starts giggling, which shifts into a manic laughter.

" _Good?!_ " She echoes, leaning towards the screen. "This is fucking awesome! Who is it?"

Entrapta leans out of the way, pressing into the wall. Catra reads the name.

Reads it again.

She feels her heartbeat pick up its pace, drumming in her ringing ears.

"Wildcat?" Scorpia asks quietly.

Catra straightens. She feels giddy. _Weak_.

Suddenly, the air inside the tank is thick and suffocating.

"Is she okay?" Entrapta asks, too.

"I'm great," Catra says hoarsely and turns on her heel. "We're going after her."

Catra slams the door on her team and storms away.

She will sleep under the stars tonight.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello and welcome on a new journey! If you're new around here, welcome, if you're familiar with my fics, welcome back!  
> So this one is a lil' different... It's a collab AU I'm working on with the wonderful and incredible [trickypinetree](https://twitter.com/trickypinetree), who illustrates and generally just has the best ideas. ;)  
> We hope you'll enjoy this trashpunk wasteland goodness, and that you'll come hang out with us on Twitter, I'm also [DandyVela](https://twitter.com/dandyvela) there - my profile is age restricted so if you follow, please have your age in your bio or I'll have to block you. Tricky is nicer. And posts less porn. Go follow her instead.
> 
> Thank you so so much for reading! ♡ Feel free to tell us what you think in the comments on on Twitter, or on my CC!  
> See you next time~


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